Sermon Text for 4th Week in Easter – Our Good Shepherd walked through the Valley for us.

HE IS RISEN!!!! HE IS RISEN INDEED!

Easter 4A – Our Good Shepherd walked through the Valley for us.

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Easter 4A – Our Good Shepherd walked through the Valley for us.

1. Today marks the fourth Sunday of Easter, it is traditionally called Good Shepherd Sunday for the historic Gospel lesson for today John 10:11, “I am the Good Shepherd, the Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”
   1. Western society isn’t an agrarian society anymore like 1^st century Israel.
      1. Some of you may remember the way you grew up or visiting your grandparents’ farm with sheep.
      1. For those like your pastor, I’ve never been around sheep except in a petting zoo, I know nothing about sheep or shepherding.
      1. But it doesn’t take much in the context of the biblical witness to get a rudimentary understanding of sheep culture.
      1. As Luther notes in his commentary on Psalm 23, “[A sheep] is a poor, weak, simple little beast that can neither feed nor rule itself, nor find the right way, nor protect itself against any kind of danger or misfortune. Moreover, it is by nature timid, shy, and likely to go astray. When it does go a bit astray and leaves its shepherd, it is unable to find its way back to him…and strays about until the wolf seizes it or it perishes some other way.”
   1. Overall, the biblical image of sheep is not particularly positive, so it’s a little insulting that the sheep often referred to in Scripture aren’t animals but us.
      1. It confronts the image that we would rather project – confident, strong, self-assured, independent and capable.
      1. And it has been increasingly easy to convince ourselves that we are more than just sheep since the dawn of the modern era.
      1. After all we now live in climate-controlled homes with clean running water, indoor plumbing, a safe and secure food supply, and electricity.
      1. Not to mention all the science and medicine, computers, cell phones, multiple cars…the list goes on and on
   1. We have come to expect that secure existence as our right for being the wonderful people we imagine ourselves to be
      1. But when something like coronavirus strips all of that away it dispels our illusion and we’re revealed as sheep in peoples’ clothing.
      1. The safety we took for granted has been removed…we’re vulnerable after all.
   1. And in that position of vulnerability we realize that we need a shepherd, but all of the “shepherds” that we raise up are inadequate to the task because they’re sheep like us.
      1. Our collective wisdom and foresight have not overcome the problem; the advice has been rather sheepish: “Shelter in place, don’t go out i.e. be afraid…be very afraid.”
      1. And as a result, we have an economy in shambles, people out of work, society in turmoil like sheep milling about.
      1. I don’t blame our leaders they have done the best that they could with the information and medicine we have, we don’t have a solution.
      1. But the ultimate answer isn’t found in any human shepherd.
2. We have a moment as God’s people to remember Who our real Shepherd is and seek the peace and security that are unaffected by the storms of this life
   1. Psalm 23 is the best known and loved Psalm in the Bible, but you might never have examined it closely.
      1. It’s not just about shepherding; it combines two images of God’s provision for us at the beginning and the end.
      1. It begins with, The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
      1. It ends with the imagery of a banquet, You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
      1. What connects these two images is God’s presence, Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
   1. Our Lord is a God who delights to be present with His people, we were created for that kind of face to face fellowship with God.
      1. In the Garden of Eden before sin God walked in the cool of the day looking for Adam and Eve, we’re given the idea this was normal.
      1. Our sin disrupted that relationship and introduced all kinds of suffering into the world (the valley of the shadow of death), BUT God still desires to be with us even in that valley.
      1. So, He made a way not only to be with His creation in the birth of Jesus, but through that same Jesus to save creation.
      1. We don’t have to fear the valley of death because He already walked through it for us and rose victorious that first Easter morning!
   1. His victory means that we can enjoy the green pastures and table fellowship mentioned in Psalm 23 with our Lord in His house forever!
      1. There is a beautiful symmetry in Scripture. The bible opens at the dawn of creation in the Garden where we are in fellowship with God.
      1. When Scripture closes in Revelation we see a restored Garden and hear the declaration, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
      1. In between is the story of how our Good Shepherd triumphed over the valley of death so that it’s only a passing shadow for us.
      1. He is risen…He is risen indeed! Alleluia! And because He lives you too shall live.